Search results for: English as foreign language classroom

Authors: Vahid Bairami Rad, Shapoor Norazar, Moslem Talebi Asl

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The fast growing accessibility and capability of emerging technologies have fashioned enormous possibilities of designing, developing and implementing innovative teaching methods in the classroom. Using teaching methods and technology together have a fantastic results, because the global technological scenario has paved the way to new pedagogies in teaching-learning process. At the other side methods by focusing on students and the ways of learning in them, that can demonstrate logical ways of improving student achievement in English as a foreign language in Iran. The sample of study was 90 students of 10th grade of high school located in Ardebil. A pretest-posttest equivalent group designed to compare the achievement of groups. Students divided to 3 group, Control base, computer base, method and technology base. Pretest and post test contain 30 items each from English textbook were developed and administrated, then obtained data were analyzed. The results showed that there was an important difference. The 3rd group performance was better than other groups. On the basis of this result it was obviously counseled that teaching-learning capabilities.

Keywords: method, technology based environment, computer based environment, english as a foreign language, student achievement

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Authors: Esperanza C. Santos

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Japanese Language was traditionally considered as a means of imparting culture and training aesthetic experience in students and therefore as something beyond the practical aims of language teaching and learning. Due to the complexity of foreign languages, lots of language learners and teachers shared deep reservations about the potentials of foreign language in enhancing the communication skills of the students. In spite of the arguments against the use of Foreign Language (Nihon-go) in the classroom, the researcher strongly support the use of Nihon-go in teaching communication skills as the researcher believes that Nihon-go is a valuable resource to be exploited in the classroom in order to help the students explore the language in an interesting and challenging way. The focus of this research is to find out the relationship between the preferences, opinions, and perceptions with the communication skills. This study also identifies the significance of the relationship between preferences, opinions and perceptions and communications skills in the activities employed in Foreign language (Nihon-go) among the junior and senior students in Foreign Language 2 at the Imus Institute, Imus Cavite during the academic year 2013-2014. The results of the study are expected to encourage further studies that particularly focused on the communication skills as brought about by the identified factors namely: preferences, opinions, and perceptions on the benefits factor namely the language acquisition; access to Japanese culture and students' interpretative ability. Therefore, this research is in its quest for the issues and concerns on how to effectively teach different learning activities in a Nihon-go class.

Keywords: preferences, opinions, perceptions, language acquisition

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Authors: Ibtisam Mohammed Salim Al Quraini

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This paper examines how introducing Omani literature in foreign language classrooms can influence the students' motivation in learning the language. The data was collected through the questionnaire which was administered to two samples (A and B) of the participants. Sample A was comprised of 30 female students from English department who are specialist in English literature in college of Arts and Social Science. Sample B in contrast was comprised of 10 female students who their major is English from college of Education. Results show that each genre in literature has different influence on the students' motivation in learning the language which proves that literacy texts are powerful. Generally, Omani English teachers tend to avoid teaching literature because they think that it is a difficult method to use in teaching field. However, the advantages and the influences of teaching poetries, short stories, and plays are discussed. Recommendations for current research and further research are also discussed at the end.

Keywords: education, plays, short stories, poems

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Authors: Linda Weinberg, Miriam Symon

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While few institutions of higher education in Israel offer international programs taught entirely in English, many Israeli students today can study at least one content course taught in English during their degree program. In particular, with the growth of international partnerships and opportunities for student mobility, English medium instruction is a growing phenomenon. There are however no official guidelines in Israel for how to develop and implement content courses in English and no training to help lecturers prepare for teaching their materials in a foreign language. Furthermore, the implications for the students and the nature of the courses themselves have not been sufficiently considered. In addition, the institution must have lecturers who are able to teach these courses effectively in English. An international project funded by the European Union addresses these issues and a set of guidelines which provide guidance for lecturers in adapting their courses for delivery in English have been developed. A train-the-trainer approach is adopted in order to cascade knowledge and experience in English medium instruction from experts to language teachers and on to content teachers thus maximizing the scope of professional development. To accompany training, a model English medium course has been created which serves the dual purpose of highlighting alternatives to the frontal lecture while integrating language learning objectives with content goals. This course can also be used as a standalone content course. The development of the guidelines and of the course utilized backwards, forwards and central design in an iterative process. The goals for combined language and content outcomes were identified first after which a suitable framework for achieving these goals was constructed. The assessment procedures evolved through collaboration between content and language specialists and subsequently were put into action during a piloting phase. Feedback from the piloting teachers and from the students highlight the need for clear channels of communication to encourage frank and honest discussion of expectations versus reality. While much of what goes on in the English medium classroom requires no better teaching skills than are required in any classroom, the understanding of students' abilities in achieving reasonable learning outcomes in a foreign language must be rationalized and accommodated within the course design. Concomitantly, preparatory language classes for students must be able to adapt to prepare students for specific language and cognitive skills and activities that courses conducted in English require. This paper presents findings from the implementation of a purpose-designed English medium instruction course arrived at through an iterative backwards, forwards and central design process utilizing feedback from students and lecturers alike leading to suggested guidelines for English medium instruction in higher education.

Keywords: English medium instruction, higher education, iterative design process, train-the-trainer

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Authors: Roger G. Pagente Jr.

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This study seeks to investigate the language learning experiences of the thirty-nine AB-English majors who were selected through fish-bowl technique from the 157 students enrolled in the AB-English program. Findings taken from the diary, questionnaire and unstructured interview revealed that motivation, learners’ belief, self-monitoring, language anxiety, activities and strategies were the prevailing factors that influenced the learning of English of the participants.

Keywords: diary, English language learning experiences, self-monitoring, language anxiety

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Authors: Mutwakel Abdalla Ali Garalzain

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The aim of this study is to develop university EFL students’ communicative competence. The descriptive, analytical method was used in this study. To collect the data, the researcher designed two questionnaires, one for university EFL students and the other for English language teachers. The respondents of the study were eighty-eight; 76 university EFL students, and 12 English language teachers. The data obtained were analyzed by using statistical package for social science (SPSS). The findings of the study have revealed that most of the university EFL students are unable to express their ideas properly, although they have an abundance of vocabulary. The findings of the study have also shown that most of the university EFL students have positive attitudes towards communicative competence. The results of the study also identified the best strategies that can be used to enhance university EFL students’ communicative competence in English language teaching. The study recommends that English language textbooks should be compatible with the requirements of the student-centered approach. It also recommends that English language teachers should adopt the communicative approach’s strategies in the EFL classroom.

Keywords: applied linguistics, communicative competence , English language teaching, university EFL students

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Authors: Ugahara Bin Mahyuddin Yunus

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In English Language Teaching, it cannot be denied that the backgrounds of English teachers do affect the way they teach English to their students, which in turn will affect their students’ English learning itself. Thus, it is very important to understand who the English teachers are so that how they teach English to their students can be understood. One of their backgrounds that is essential to be highlighted is their culture. Certainly, they wittingly or not will bring the perspectives and values of their culture into their daily teaching practices. In other words, their cultural identities do shape how they teach their students. Cultural identities themselves actually consist of some elements, one of which is regional identity. Indeed, the culture of the region in which English teachers identify with has impact on their beliefs and actions during teaching. For this reason, this study aims to understand how the regional identity of English teachers influence the way they teach English to their students. This study is a qualitative study conducted in a multilingual and multicultural setting, namely Aceh, Indonesia. Here, four Acehnese English teachers were involved as the research participants. In addition, this study adopted poststructuralist perspective to identity as the theoretical framework. Three research instruments were used in this study, namely semi-structured interviews, classroom observation, and teacher journal. The data gained from these instruments were then analyzed by using thematic analysis. Obviously, the research about the regional identity of English teachers in English Language Teaching has been studied worldwide. However, little is still known about it in Indonesian context, let alone Indonesia itself is a super diverse country with 34 regions. As a result, this study presents a good opportunity to advance the knowledge of how the regional identity construction of English teachers in this setting is. The findings of the study revealed that their regional identity construction in teaching was highly influenced by their indigenous language and religious faith. Even, how they teach English in classroom, in fact, is related to these two things. The conclusion that can be drawn from this study is for these English teachers, in fact, their regional identity itself constitutes their use of local language and religious identity, which are considered by them as their core identity.

Keywords: English language teaching, English teachers, identity construction, regional identity

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Authors: Nanyonjo Juliet

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Across Sub-Saharan Africa, it’s increasingly becoming an absolute necessity for either parents or governments to encourage learners, most particularly those attending high schools, to study a second or foreign language other than the “official language” or the language of instruction in schools. The major second or foreign languages under consideration include but are not necessarily limited to English, French, German, Arabic, Swahili/Kiswahili, Spanish and Chinese. The benefits of learning a second (foreign) language in the globalized world cannot be underestimated. Amongst others, it has been expounded to especially involve such opportunities related to traveling, studying abroad and widening one’s career prospects. Research has also revealed that beyond these non-cognitive rewards, learning a second language enables learners to become more thoughtful, considerate and confident, make better decisions, keep their brain healthier and generally – speaking, broaden their world views. The methodology of delivering a successful 2nd language – learning process by a professionally qualified teacher is located in motivation. We strongly believe that the psychology involved in teaching a foreign language is of paramount importance to a learner’s successful learning experience. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to explore and show the importance of motivation in the teaching and learning of a given 2nd (foreign) language in the local Ugandan high schools.

Keywords: second language, foreign language, language learning, language teaching, official language, language of instruction, globalized world, cognitive rewards, non-cognitive rewards, learning process, motivation

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Authors: Peizhu Liu

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Dual language education, also known as immersion education, differs from traditional language programs that teach a second or foreign language as a subject. Instead, dual language programs adopt a content-based approach, using both a majority language (e.g., English, in the case of the United States) and a minority language (e.g., Spanish or Chinese) as a medium of instruction to teach math, science, and social studies. By granting each language of instruction equal status, dual language education seeks to educate not only meaningfully but equitably and to foster tolerance and appreciation of diversity, making it essential for immigrants, refugees, indigenous peoples, and other marginalized students. Despite the cognitive and academic benefits of dual language education, recent literature has revealed that English is disproportionately privileged across dual language programs. Scholars have expressed concerns about the unbalanced status of majority and minority languages in dual language education, as favoring English in this context may inadvertently reaffirm its dominance and moreover fail to serve the needs of children whose primary language is not English. Through a year-long study of a Chinese-English dual language program, the extensively disproportionate use of English has also been observed by the researcher. However, despite the fact that Chinese-English dual language programs are the second-most popular program type after Spanish in the United States, this issue remains underexplored in the existing literature on Chinese-English dual language education. In fact, the number of Chinese-English dual language programs being offered in the U.S. has grown rapidly, from 8 in 1988 to 331 as of 2023. Using Norton and Darvin's investment model theory, the current study investigates teachers' language use and investment in teaching Chinese and English in a Chinese-English dual language program at an urban public school in New York City. The program caters to a significant number of minority children from working-class families. Adopting an ethnographic and discourse analytic approach, this study seeks to understand language use dynamics in the program and how micro- and macro-factors, such as students' identity construction, parents' and teachers' language ideologies, and the capital associated with each language, influence teachers' investment in teaching Chinese and English. The research will help educators and policymakers understand the obstacles that stand in the way of the goal of dual language education—that is, the creation of a more inclusive classroom, which is achieved by regarding both languages of instruction as equally valuable resources. The implications for how to balance the use of the majority and minority languages will also be discussed.

Keywords: dual language education, bilingual education, language immersion education, content-based language teaching

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Authors: Panisa Panyalert

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This research aims to study the difference between Thailand and China in using English language in the homestay business, and also promoting using English language in the Thai community for developing employees in the tourism business. Then, the two provinces which are Samut Songkram province, Thailand and Yangzhou province, China where English is not the official language can be occurred more problems and difficulties in the communication to foreign tourists. The study uses the questionnaire for collecting the data by distributing the questionnaire to the homestay’s staff both in Samut Songkram province, Thailand and Yangzhou province, China. The sample group is 100 homestays for each province. The method of participant as observer role is required to play during visiting each homestay. Due to the comparative of the research between Samut Songkram and Yangzhou homestays, there are two hypotheses, hypothesis one: there will be relationships between English using and the profit of a homestay, probability because if the homestay staff can speak English, there will be more travelers, especially foreigners come for staying, and hypothesis two: managers in Thailand may know more English than the Chinese homestay staff. The questionnaire is separated into three parts to answer the two hypotheses. The first part is about the general information of the informant, the second part is mainly concerned with the homestay business characteristics, and the third part is English language using. As a result, the research is clearly answered the second hypothesis which is Thai homestay is using more English language than Chinese homestay.

Keywords: English language, guesthouse, homestay, using English

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Authors: Chek Kim Loi

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This study reports on a study examining the body paragraphs of English academic essays written by some ESL (English as a Second Language) undergraduate students. These students took English for Academic Purposes course for one semester at a public university in Malaysia. In addition to analyzing the communicative purposes employed in the sample, for triangulation of data, student participants were interviewed on their academic writing experience in their English for Academic Purposes (EAP) classroom. The present study has pedagogical implications in an EAP classroom.

Keywords: academic writing, body paragraphs, communicative purposes, pedagogical implications

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Authors: Nazia Shehzad

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Language and art can supplement and correlate each other. Through the ages art has been a means of visual expression used to convey a wide series of incarnated ideas. Art can take the perceiver into different times and into different worlds. It can also be used to introduce different levels of vocabulary to the learners of a second language. Learning a second language for most students is a very difficult and strenuous experience. They are not only trying to accommodate to a new language but are also trying to adjust to themselves and a new environment. They are anxious about almost everything, but they are especially self-conscious about their performance in the classroom. By relocating the focus from the student to an object, everyone participates, thus waiving a certain degree of self-consciousness. The experience, a student has with art in the classroom has to be gratifying for both the student and the teacher. If the atmosphere in the classroom is too grave it will not serve any useful purpose. Art is an excellent way to teach English and encourage collaboration and interaction between students of all ages. As making art involves many different processes, it is wonderful for classification and following/giving instructions. It is also an effective way to achieve and implement language of characterization and comparison and vocabulary acquirement for the elements of design (shape, size, color, texture, tone etc.) is so much more entertaining if done in a practical and hands-on way. Expressing ideas and feelings through art is also of immeasurable value where students are at the beginning stages of English language acquisition and for many of my Saudi students it was a form of therapy. It is also a way to respect, search, examine and share the cultural traditions of different cultures, and of the students themselves. Art not only provides a field for ideas to keep aimless, meandering minds of students' busy but is also a productive tool to analyze English language in a new order. As an ESL teacher, using art is a highly compelling way to bridge the gap between student and teacher. It’s difficult to keep students concentrated, especially when they speak a different language. To get students to actually learn and explore something in your foreign language lesson, artwork is your best friend. Many teachers feel that through amalgamation of the arts into their academic lessons students are able to learn more profoundly because they use diverse ways of thinking and problem solving. Teachers observe that drawing often retains students who might otherwise be dispassionate and can help students move ahead simple recall when they are asked to make connections and come up with an exclusive interpretation through an artwork or drawing. Students use observation skills when they are drawing, and this can help to persuade students who might otherwise remain silent or need more time to process information.

Keywords: amalgamation of arts, expressing ideas and feelings through arts, effective way to achieve and implement language, language and art can supplement and correlate each other

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Authors: Ozlem Kaya

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21st-century learners are energetic and tech-savvy, and the skills and the knowledge required in this century are complex and challenging. Therefore, teachers need to find new ways to appeal to the needs and interests of their students and meet the demands of the 21st century at the same time. One way to do so in English language learning has been to incorporate various technology tools into classroom practices. Although teachers think these practices are effective and their students enjoy them, students may have different perceptions. To find out what students think about the use of technology tools in terms of developing 21st-century skills and knowledge, this study was conducted at Anadolu University School of Foreign Languages. A questionnaire was administered to 40 students at elementary level. Afterward, semi-structured interviews were held with 8 students to provide deeper insight into their perceptions. The details of the findings of the study will be presented and discussed during the presentation.

Keywords: 21st century skills, technology tools, perception, English Language Learning

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Authors: A. T. Zaki

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The flipped classroom approach as a mode of blended learning was formally introduced to students of the English language modules at the British University in Egypt (BUE) at the start of the academic year 2015/2016. This paper aims to study the impact of the flipped classroom approach after three semesters of implementation. It will restrict itself to the examination of students’ achievement rates, student satisfaction, and how different student cohorts have benefited differently from the flipped practice. The paper concludes with recommendations of how the experience can be further developed.

Keywords: achievement rates, developmental experience, Egypt, flipped classroom, higher education, student cohorts, student satisfaction

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Authors: Chrysanthi S. Tiliakou, Katerina T. Frantzi

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Writing has always been considered a most demanding skill for English as a Foreign Language learners as well as for native speakers. Novice foreign language writers are asked to handle a limited range of vocabulary to produce writing tasks at lower levels. Adverbs are the parts of speech that are not used extensively in the early stages of English as a Foreign Language writing. An additional problem with learning new adverbs is that, next to learning their meanings, learners are expected to acquire the proper placement of adverbs in a sentence. The use of adverbs is important as they enhance “expressive richness to one’s message”. By exploring the patterns of use of adverbs, researchers and educators can identify types of adverbs, which appear more taxing for young learners or that puzzle novice English as a Foreign Language writers with their placement, and focus on their teaching. To this end, the study examines the use of adverbs on two written Corpora of young learners of English of A1 – A2 levels and determines the types of adverbs used, their frequencies, problems in their use, and whether there is any differentiation between levels. The Antconc concordancing tool was used for the Greek Learner Corpus, and the Corpuscle concordancing tool for the Norwegian Corpus. The research found a similarity in the normalized frequencies of the adverbs used in the A1-A2 level Greek Learner Corpus with the frequencies of the same adverbs in the Norwegian Learner Corpus.

Keywords: learner corpora, young learners, writing, use of adverbs

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Authors: Ana Maghfiroh

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Learning a foreign language needs a big effort from the learner itself to make their language ability grows better day by day. Among those, they also need a support from all around them including teacher, friends, as well as activities which support them to speak the language. When those activities developed well as a habit which are done regularly, it will help improving the students’ language competence. It was a qualitative research which aimed to find out and describe some activities implemented in Pesantren Al Mawaddah, Ponorogo, in order to teach the students a foreign language. In collecting the data, the researcher used interview, questionnaire, and documentation. From the study, it was found that Pesantren Al Mawaddah had successfully built the language habit on the students to speak the target language. More than 15 hours a day students were compelled to speak foreign language, Arabic or English, in turn. It aimed to habituate the students to keep in touch with the target language. The habit was developed through daily language activities, such as dawn vocabs giving, dictionary handling, daily language use, speech training and language intensive course, daily language input, and night vocabs memorizing. That habit then developed the students awareness towards the language learned as well as promoted their language mastery.

Keywords: habit, communicative competence, daily language activities, Pesantren

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Authors: Shehroz Mukhtar, Maqsood Ahmed, Abdullah Mukhtar, Choudhry Shahid, Waqar Javaid

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Code switching is a common phenomenon, generally observed in multilingual communities across the globe. A critical look at code-switching literature reveals that mostly code-switching has been studied in the classrooms in learning and teaching contexts, while code-switching outside the classroom in settings such as café, hostels and so on has been the least explored areas. The current research investigated the reasons for code-switching in the interactive practices of students and their perceptions regarding the same outside the classroom settings. This paper is the study of the common practice that prevails in the Universities of Sialkot that bilinguals mix two languages when they speak in different classroom situations. In Pakistani classrooms where Multilingual is in abundance, i.e. they can speak two or more two languages at the same time, code-switching or language combination is very common. The teachers of Sialkot switch from one language to another consciously or unconsciously while teaching English in the classrooms. This phenomenon has not been explored in Sialkot’s teaching context. In Sialkot, private educational institutes do not encourage code-switching, whereas public or government institutes use it frequently. The crux of this research is to investigate and identify the importance of code-switching by taking its users into consideration. The survey research method and survey questionnaire will be used to get exact data from teachers and students. We will try to highlight the functions and importance of code switching in foreign language classrooms of Sialkot and will explore why this trend is emerging in Sialkot.

Keywords: code switching, foreign language classrooms, bilingual context, use of L1, importance of L2.

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Authors: Huang Yajing

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Multimodal discourse refers to the phenomenon of using various senses such as hearing, vision, and touch to communicate through various means and symbolic resources such as language, images, sounds, and movements. With the development of modern technology and multimedia, language and technology have become inseparable, and foreign language teaching is becoming more and more modal. Teacher-student communication resorts to multiple senses and uses multiple symbol systems to construct and interpret meaning. The classroom is a semiotic space where multimodal discourses are intertwined. College English multi-modal teaching is to rationally utilize traditional teaching methods while mobilizing and coordinating various modern teaching methods to form a joint force to promote teaching and learning. Multimodal teaching makes full and reasonable use of various meaning resources and can maximize the advantages of multimedia and network environments. Based upon the above theories about multimodal discourse and multimedia technology, the present paper will propose a multi-modal teaching model for college English in China.

Keywords: multimodal discourse, multimedia technology, English education, applied linguistics

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Authors: Hanan Abufares Elkhimry

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Looking for more effective teaching and learning approaches, teaching instructors have been telling trainee teachers to decrease their talking time, but the problem is how best to do this. Doing classroom research, specifically in the area of teacher talking time (TTT), is worthwhile, as it could improve the quality of teaching languages, as the learners are the ones who should be practicing and using the language. This work hopes to ascertain if teachers consider this need in a way that provides the students with the opportunities to increase their production of language. This is a question that is worthwhile answering. As many researchers have found, TTT should be decreased to 30% of classroom talking time and STT should be increased up to 70%. Other researchers agree with this, but add that it should be with awareness of the quality of teacher talking time. Therefore, this study intends to investigate the balance between quantity and quality of teacher talking time in the EFL classroom. For this piece of research and in order to capture the amount of talking in a four classrooms. The amount of talking time was measured. A Checklist was used to assess the quality of the talking time In conclusion, In order to improve the quality of TTT, the results showed that teachers may use more or less than 30% of the classroom talking time and still produce a successful classroom learning experience. As well as, the important factors that can affect TTT is the English level of the students. This was clear in the classroom observations, where the highest TTT recorded was with the lowest English level group.

Keywords: teacher talking time TTT, learning experience, classroom research, effective teaching

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Authors: Comfort Aina

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Modern English, as we all know it to be a foreign language to many, will require training and re-training on the path of the teacher and learners alike. As a teacher, you cannot give that which you do not have. Teachers, many of whom are non-native speakers, are required to be competent in solving problems occurring in the teaching and learning processes. They should be conscious of up to date information about new approaches, methods, techniques as well as they should be capable in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) and, of course, should work on the improvement of their language components and competence. For teachers to be successful in these goals, they need to be encouraged and motivated. So, for EFL teachers to be successful, they are enrolled to in-service teacher training, ICT training, some of the training they undergo and the benefits accrued to it will be the focus of the paper.

Keywords: training, management, method, english language, EFL teachers

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Authors: Madhavi Godavarthy

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The globalized world has been witnessing the ubiquity of the English language and has made it mandatory that students be equipped with the required Communication and soft skills. For students and especially for students studying in technical streams, gaining command over the English language is only a part of the bigger challenges they will face in the future. Linguistic capabilities if blended with the right attitude and a positive personality would deliver better results in the present environment of the digitalized world. An English classroom has that ‘space’; a space if utilized well by the teacher can pay rich dividends. The prescribed syllabus for English in the process of adapting itself to the challenges of a more and more technical world has meted out an indifferent treatment in including ‘literary’ material in their curriculum. A debate has always existed regarding the same and diversified opinions have been given. When the student is motivated to reach Literature through intrinsic motivation, it may contribute to his/her personality-development. In the present paper, the element of focus is on the scope and space to motivate students by creating a specific space for herself/himself amidst the schedules of the teaching-learning processes by taking into consideration a few literary excerpts for the purpose.

Keywords: English language, teaching and learning process, reader response theory, intrinsic motivation, literary texts

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Authors: Anne Crescini

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The number of loanwords borrowed into the Japanese language is increasing rapidly in recent years, and many linguists argue that loanwords make up more than 10% of the Japanese lexicon. While these loanwords come from various Western languages, 80%-90% are borrowed from English. Also, there is a separate group of words and phrases categorized as ‘Japanese English’. These made-in-Japan linguistic creations may look and sound like English, but in fact are not used by native speakers and are often incomprehensible to them. Linguistically, the important thing to remember is that these terms are not English ones, but in fact, 100% Japanese words. A problem arises in language teaching, however, when Japanese English learners are unable to distinguish authentic loans from Japanese English terms. This confusion could greatly impede language acquisition and communication. The goal of this paper is to determine to what degree this potential misunderstanding may interfere with communication. Native English speakers living in the United States were interviewed and shown a list of romanized Japanese English terms, which are both commonly used and often mistaken for authentic loans. Then, the words were put into the context of a sentence in order to ascertain if context in any way aided comprehension. The results showed that while some terms are understood on their own, and others are understood better in context, a large number of the terms are entirely incomprehensible to native English speakers. If that is the case, and a Japanese learner mistakes a Japanese English term for an authentic loan, a communication breakdown may occur during interaction in English. With the ever-increasing presence of both groups of terms in the Japanese language, it is more important than ever that teaching professionals address this topic in the language classroom.

Keywords: Japanese, Japanese English, language acquisition, loanwords

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Authors: Wajiha Fatima

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Various approaches and methods for second language classroom teaching have been proposed since the nineteenth century. Task Based Language Teaching has been prevailing approach in a second language classroom context. It is an approach which immerses students in a naturalistic setting. Tasks are the core unit of planning and instruction. This paper aims at expounding the concept of Task Based Language Teaching and how it has been evolved. In this study, researcher will highlight the usefulness of TBLT and the role it played as a powerful tool for learning and teaching in a second language setting. The article will reflect the implementation of various tasks based activities as well as the roles played by learners and teachers and the problems faced by them. In the end, researcher will discuss how TBLT can be implemented in second language classroom pedagogy.

Keywords: implementation, second language classroom, tasks, task based language teaching

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Authors: Edward Sarich, Jack Ryan

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In contrast to learning new vocabulary incidentally in one’s first language, foreign language vocabulary is often acquired purposefully, because a lack of natural exposure requires it to be studied in an artificial environment. It follows then that foreign language vocabulary may be more efficiently acquired if it is purpose-driven, or linked to a clear and desirable outcome. The research described in this paper relates to the early stages of what is seen as a long-term effort to measure the effectiveness of a methodology for purpose-driven foreign language vocabulary instruction, specifically by analyzing whether directed studying from high-frequency vocabulary lists leads to an improvement in Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) scores. The research was carried out in two sections of a first-year university English composition class at a small university in Japan. The results seem to indicate that purposeful study from relevant high-frequency vocabulary lists can contribute to raising TOEIC scores and that the test preparation methodology used in this study was thought by students to be beneficial in helping them to prepare to take this high-stakes test.

Keywords: corpus vocabulary, language asssessment, second language vocabulary acquisition, TOEIC test preparation

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Authors: Sonia Arradaza-Pajaron

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English as a second language is widely spoken in the Philippines. In fact, it is used as a medium of instruction in school. However, Filipino students, in general, are still not proficient in the use of the language. Since it plays a very crucial role in the learning and comprehension of some subjects in the school where important key concepts and in English, it is imperative to look into other factors that may affect such concern. This study may post an answer to the said concern because it aimed to investigate the association between a psychological construct, known as emotional intelligence, and the English language performance of the 55 senior high school students. The study utilized a descriptive correlational method to determine the significant relationship of variables with preliminary data, like GPA in English subject as baseline information of their performance. Results revealed that the respondents had an average GPA in the English subject; however, improving from their first-year high school level to the fourth year. Their English performance resulted to an above average level with a notable higher performance in the speaking test than in the written. Further, a strong correlation between English performance and emotional intelligence was manifested. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that students with higher emotional intelligence their English language performance is expected to be the same. It can be said further that when students’ emotional intelligence (EI components) is facilitated well through various classroom activities, a better English performance would just be spontaneous among them.

Keywords: English language performance, emotional intelligence, EI components, emotional literacy, emotional quotient competence, emotional quotient outcomes, values and beliefs

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Authors: Stanle Madonsela

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For learning to take place effectively, learners have to use language. Language becomes a critical tool by which to communicate, to express feelings, desires and thoughts, and most of all to learn. However, each individual’s capacity to use language is unique. In multilingual countries, classrooms usually comprise learners from different language backgrounds, and therefore the language used for teaching and learning requires rethinking. Interaction in the classroom, if done in a language that is understood by the learners, could maximise the outcomes of learning. This paper explores the extent to which the use of a single code becomes a source of anxiety to learners in multilingual classrooms in South African schools. It contends that a multilingual approach in the learning process should be explored in order to promote learner autonomy in the learning process.

Keywords: anxiety, classroom, foreign language teaching, multilingual

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Authors: Kazeem Oluwatoyin Ajape

Abstract:

The study is concerned with the problem of how to improve the teaching of Arabic as a foreign language in Nigerian Higher Education System. The paper traces the historical background of Arabic education in Nigeria and also outlines the problems facing the language in Nigerian Institutions. It lays down some of the essential foundation work necessary for bringing about systematic and constructive improvements in the Teaching of Arabic as a Foreign Language (TAFL) by giving answers to the following research questions: what is the appropriate medium of instruction in teaching a foreign or second language? What is the position of English language in the teaching and learning of Arabic/Islamic education? What is the relevance of the present curriculum of Arabic /Islamic education in Nigerian institutions to the contemporary society? A survey of the literature indicates that a revolution is currently taking place in FL teaching and that a new approach known as the Communicative Approach (CA), has begun to emerge and influence the teaching of FLs in general, over the last decade or so. Since the CA is currently being adapted to the teaching of most major FLs and since this revolution has not yet had much impact on TAPL, the study explores the possibility of the application of the CA to the teaching of Arabic as a living language and also makes recommendations towards the development of the language in Nigerian Institutions of Higher Learning.

Keywords: Arabic Language, foreign language, Nigerian institutions, curriculum, communicative approach

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Authors: Thi Phuong Ly Tran

Abstract:

Being a basic and unique to human beings, cognitive activity possesses spiritualistic characteristics and is conveyed through languages. Words that represent rational cognition or processes related to rationality as follow: know, think, understand, doubt, be afraid, remember, forget, think (that), realize (that), find (that), etc. can reflect the process by which human beings have transformed cognitive activities into diversified and delicate manners through linguistic tasks. In this research article, applying the descriptive method and comparative method, we would like to utilize the application of the theoretical system of linguistic characteristics of cognitive verbs in Vietnamese language in comparison with English language. These achievements of this article will meaningfully contribute to highlight characteristics of Vietnamese language and identify the similarities and differences in the linguistic processes of Vietnamese and English people as well as supply more knowledge for social requirements such as foreign language learning, dictionary editing, language teaching in schools.

Keywords: cognitive activity, cognitive perspective, Vietnamese language, English language

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Authors: Mamiko Orii

Abstract:

This study reports on primary school second language teachers’ sources of language insecurity. Furthermore, it aims to develop an in-service training course to reduce anxiety and build sufficient English communication skills. Language/Linguistic insecurity refers to a lack of confidence experienced by language speakers. In particular, second language/non-native learners often experience insecurity, influencing their learning efficacy. While language learner insecurity has been well-documented, research on the insecurity of language teaching professionals is limited. Teachers’ language insecurity or anxiety in target language use may adversely affect language instruction. For example, they may avoid classroom activities requiring intensive language use. Therefore, understanding teachers’ language insecurity and providing continuing education to help teachers to improve their proficiency is vital to improve teaching quality. This study investigated Japanese primary school teachers’ language insecurity. In Japan, teachers are responsible for teaching most subjects, including English, which was recently added as compulsory. Most teachers have never been professionally trained in second language instruction during college teacher certificate preparation, leading to low confidence in English teaching. Primary source of language insecurity is a lack of confidence regarding English communication skills. Their actual use of English in classrooms remains unclear. Teachers’ classroom speech remains a neglected area requiring improvement. A more refined programme for second language teachers could be constructed if we can identify areas of need. Two questionnaires were administered to primary school teachers in Tokyo: (1) Questionnaire A: 396 teachers answered questions (using a 5-point scale) concerning classroom teaching anxiety and general English use and needs for in-service training (Summer 2021); (2) Questionnaire B: 20 teachers answered detailed questions concerning their English use (Autumn 2022). Questionnaire A’s responses showed that over 80% of teachers have significant language insecurity and anxiety, mainly when speaking English in class or teaching independently. Most teachers relied on a team-teaching partner (e.g., ALT) and avoided speaking English. Over 70% of the teachers said they would like to participate in training courses in classroom English. Questionnaire B’s results showed that teachers could use simple classroom English, such as greetings and basic instructions (e.g., stand up, repeat after me), and initiate conversation (e.g., asking questions). In contrast, teachers reported that conversations were mainly carried on in a simple question-answer style. They had difficulty continuing conversations. Responding to learners’ ‘on-the-spot’ utterances was particularly difficult. Instruction in turn-taking patterns suitable in the classroom communication context is needed. Most teachers received grammar-based instruction during their entire English education. They were predominantly exposed to displayed questions and form-focused corrective feedback. Therefore, strategies such as encouraging teachers to ask genuine questions (i.e., referential questions) and responding to students with content feedback are crucial. When learners’ utterances are incorrect or unsatisfactory, teachers should rephrase or extend (recast) them instead of offering explicit corrections. These strategies support a continuous conversational flow. These results offer benefits beyond Japan’s English as a second Language context. They will be valuable in any context where primary school teachers are underprepared but must provide English-language instruction.

Keywords: english as a second/non-native language, in-service training, primary school, teachers’ language insecurity

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Authors: Rendani Mercy Makhwathana

Abstract:

This paper intends to explore teachers' encounters when teaching English First Additional Language in rural public schools. Teachers are pillars of any education system around the globe. Educational transformations hinge on them as critical role players in the education system. Thus, teachers' encounters are worth consideration, for they impact learners' learning and the well-being of education in general. An exploratory qualitative approach was used in this paper. The population for this paper comprised all Foundation Phase teachers in the district. A purposive sample of 15 Foundation Phase teachers from five rural-based schools was used. Data were collected through classroom observation and individual face-to-face interviews. Data were categorized, analyzed, and interpreted. Amongst the revealed teachers' encounters are learners' inability to read and write and learners' lack of English language background and learners' lack of the vocabulary to express themselves. This paper recommends the provision of relevant resources and support to effectively teach English First Additional Language to enable learners' engagement and effective use of the English language.

Keywords: first additional language, english second language, medium of instruction, teacher professional development

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